


Despair

by BunniesofDoom



Series: Darkest Before the Dawn [2]
Category: RWBY
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Blake Belladonna Needs a Hug, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort, Ruby Rose (RWBY) Needs a Hug, Spoilers: Volume 8 (RWBY), Team as Family, Volume 8 (RWBY)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-15
Updated: 2021-02-15
Packaged: 2021-03-16 07:54:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,679
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29450355
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BunniesofDoom/pseuds/BunniesofDoom
Summary: Blake has never seen Ruby look so small.
Relationships: Blake Belladonna & Ruby Rose, Blake Belladonna & Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna/Yang Xiao Long
Series: Darkest Before the Dawn [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2162325
Comments: 1
Kudos: 75





	Despair

**Author's Note:**

> I wasn't originally intending to continue this, but what's one more au to add to the pile. Enjoy!

Blake has never seen Ruby look so small.

Sure, the leader of team RWBY has always been on the petite side, but her optimistic personality and bright smile had always seemed to fill up a room. And although it's common knowledge that Ruby had gotten into Beacon two years early, Blake has always found herself looking up to the younger girl, coming to her for guidance whenever she was unsure of what to do. Ruby has always seemed to possess determination and leadership skills far beyond her years.

But now, curled up on Weiss' bed next to Nora, Ruby looks tiny and scared and exhausted. Even in sleep, the circles under her eyes are dark and clearly visible, and her mouth is set in a pained grimace. She curls in on herself as if trying to hide from the world, one arm wrapped around herself in a mockery of a hug—the other is held in place by a makeshift sling, to keep her from further damaging her shoulder.

Her injuries hadn't been severe: a few bruised ribs, a dislocated shoulder, various scratches and scrapes. Klein had been able to treat her easily. As soon as her aura recovers, she should heal quickly.

Then again, it's not really the physical wounds that Blake is worried about.

The look of horror on Ruby's face when she'd realized that her mother was inside the Grimm is permanently seared into her brain. She's never seen the other girl look so shaken before. And to know that her mother had been turned into a monster, and then killing said monster—and inadvertently killing your own mother in the process, even if she had been twisted and corrupted almost beyond recognition—that's a kind of trauma that Blake can't even bear to imagine.

And Ruby had already been hanging by a thread.

"How is she?" Weiss' quiet voice startles Blake, making her jump. As she turns to face the other girl, Weiss hands her a cup of tea, which she accepts gratefully. "Sorry. Thought this might help."

"Thanks," Blake replies. Well, she might as well start with the good news. "Physically, she should be fine. She wasn't hurt too badly, so as soon as her aura kicks back in she should be on the mend."

Weiss senses her hesitation. "But—"

"About the rest, I don't know," Blake admits, pausing to take a sip of her tea. "I mean, you saw what happened. I can't imagine how Ruby must have felt. And she wasn't holding up great before this happened . . ." she lets her words trail off.

"Yeah," Weiss agrees quietly. "Ruby's resilient, but—"

"We can't be sure that she'll be able to bounce back from this," Blake finishes for her.

"Yeah," Weiss says bitterly. She sighs heavily. "I just feel so useless. I wish there were something I could do to help."

"There's not really much we can do right now. We'll just have to be there for her when she wakes up, if she'll let us."

"Not just that." Weiss bites her lip. "To help the people of Atlas and Mantle. They're out there being attacked by Grimm while we just sit around here and wait. I became a huntress because I wanted to protect people, but right now I'm not doing that at all."

"Me too," Blake whispers, staring down at her hands sadly. "But right now, we're needed here. What if Salem sends another hound or something after us, or starts an assault on the manor? We can't leave Ruby and Nora and Penny to fend for themselves, plus your mom and your brother are here." She sighs, running a hand through her hair. "And even if we could leave, it's not like we could get anywhere. May took the airship with her, remember?"

"You're right, of course you're right. I'm just frustrated, that's all. I've never been very patient."

"I'm shocked to hear that." Weiss scowls playfully at her. "When you applied to Beacon, did you ever imagine yourself doing something like this?"

"Never in a million years."

"Yeah, me neither." A sudden thought occurs to Blake. "Why don't you see if Whitley can divert any more SDC resources to fighting off the Grimm?"

Weiss' eyes light up. "That's a good idea. Will you be okay here, on your own?"

Blake nods. "I'll keep an eye on these three," she says, gesturing to Ruby, Penny, and Nora.

Blake had expected Ruby to be out for longer, but she starts to stir shortly after Weiss leaves. Her face scrunches briefly before she sits bolt upright, gasping for air and wincing as the sudden movement jars her injuries. Blake hurries to her side, taking a seat on the bed next to her and placing a (hopefully) comforting hand on her good shoulder.

"Nightmare?" Blake asks gently when Ruby's eyes finally come to focus on her face.

The younger girl nods tightly. "I'm okay," she mumbles hoarsely.

Blake decides not to argue with her, even over something so obviously and blatantly untrue. Instead, she offers Ruby some water, which she accepts automatically. Her usually vibrant silver eyes are a dull and lifeless slate grey, and her face remains blank and expressionless. She looks—dead inside, like the Apathy have gotten a hold of her again, and this time, they're winning.

It's unsettling, to say the least.

"Thanks," Ruby murmurs, her voice so quiet that Blake is forced to strain to hear it, even with her cat ears.

"No problem," Blake replies. "I'm just glad that you're awake. Is there anything else you need? Do you want to eat something, maybe?" Now that she thinks about it, she can't remember the last time she saw Ruby eat something.

Ruby's face somehow pales further at the mention of food, and she shakes her head violently. Blake does her best to take it in stride. "Okay, that's fine. Maybe later."

"Sure," Ruby mumbles, staring blankly at the wall across from the bed. Her eyes drift to Penny, lying motionless on one of the sofas, and Blake thinks that she can see a spark of life in her eyes. "Is Penny—"

She trails off, but Blake is pretty sure that she knows what she's asking. "Penny hasn't woken up yet, but I'll make sure to let you know if anything happens. Why don't you get some more rest, for now?"

The normal Ruby—the bouncy, cheerful, energetic girl that Blake is familiar with—would have immediately protested the idea. This Ruby—this blank, despondent, exhausted version—just nods in response, sliding back down until her head is on the pillow. Like she's desperate to sleep, to hide from the world.

Blake has been there before.

She doesn't comment, just pulls the covers up to Ruby's chin and brushes her hair away from her forehead. "If you need anything, just let me know." She hesitates for a second before continuing. "And you know you can talk to me and Weiss about anything, right?"

Ruby doesn't respond, her eyes already halfway shut, but one corner of her mouth twitches slightly.

Blake sits in silence for what feels like an eternity. Ruby doesn't wake up again, and neither does Penny, but Nora stirs a couple of times. Blake quietly talks to her and answers her questions, but the other girl is still pretty out of it.

She might have put on a brave face for Weiss earlier, but she's feeling pretty useless at the moment.

Her scroll's ringtone practically makes her jump out of her chair.

When she manages to compose herself, she hastily answers the call and brings the scroll up to her ear. "Hello?"

"Blake!" She's never been happier to hear her partner's voice before. "I'm so glad I could finally reach you!"

Yang sounds out of breath. "Yang, what's going on? We've all tried to call you several times. Your sister's been worried sick about you!"

"Look, I'm really sorry. There's been a lot going on—look, it's a long story, but do you guys happen to be somewhere where we could hole up for a bit?"

Blake smiles weakly. "Yeah, we are." She rattles off their location to Yang.

"Great! I'll call you when we're getting closer. Love you!"

"Love you." Blake brings her scroll down from her ear, resting her hands in her lap. She'd better inform Weiss about this new development.

Yang never thought she would be relieved to see the Schnee Manor, but after what just happened, they need a place to lay low for a bit.

The manor seems different from the last time they were here. Besides the obvious lack of decorations for a party and absence of large throngs of people, there's a large crater in the center of the courtyard, along with several other signs of recent destruction. Nerves rise in Yang's stomach at the evidence of a fight having taken place, and she swallows hard against the lump in her throat.

It hurts to think about what her team might have had to face while she wasn't there to help.

Blake is waiting for them at the front door just like she promised, a small dark figure silhouetted against the endless white of the manor. As soon as she gets close, Yang breaks into a sprint, ignoring her exhaustion and running towards her girlfriend and engulfing her in a hug. Blake returns the embrace, although less enthusiastically than Yang had envisioned.

So much for the dream reunion that Yang had been imagining.

Blake releases her and takes a step back after a few moments, scanning the others. Her lips part in surprise when she spots Emerald. "What—"

"Like I said, long story," Yang interrupts her. But why is Blake out here alone? "Where's everyone else? Where is Ruby?"

Blake purses her lips, shifting her weight from foot to foot. "They're up in Weiss' room. I'm afraid that a lot has happened while you guys were gone." She turns around to pull open the door, gesturing for the rest of them to follow her. "Come on, let's discuss this inside."

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Please comment and leave kudos if you liked it.
> 
> Just a reminder that I do take requests for fics, so if there's an idea that you'd like to see me write, feel free to message me and if I like it, I might end up writing something for it.


End file.
